| Gene Michael | |
|---|---|
 Michael in 2014 | |
| Shortstop /Manager | |
| Born:(1938-06-02)June 2, 1938 Kent, Ohio, U.S. | |
| Died: September 7, 2017(2017-09-07) (aged 79) Oldsmar, Florida, U.S. | |
Batted: Switch Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| July 15, 1966, for the Pittsburgh Pirates | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 9, 1975, for the Detroit Tigers | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .229 |
| Home runs | 15 |
| Runs batted in | 226 |
| Managerial record | 206–200 |
| Winning % | .507 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Managerial record at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
As player
As manager As general manager | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Eugene Richard Michael (June 2, 1938 – September 7, 2017), known asStick, was an American professionalbaseball player,coach,scout,manager and team executive. He appeared in 973games inMajor League Baseball, primarily as ashortstop, between1966 and1975, most prominently as a member of theNew York Yankees, for whom he anchored their infield for seven seasons. He also played for thePittsburgh Pirates,Los Angeles Dodgers andDetroit Tigers. He was a light hitter but also a quick and smooth defensive player.
After his playing career, Michael managed the Yankees andChicago Cubs and served as the Yankees'general manager. As an executive, Michael is credited with rebuilding the Yankees team that became adynasty in the late 1990s.[1]
Michael was born on June 2, 1938, inKent, Ohio.[1] After graduating fromAkron East High School inAkron, Ohio, he attendedKent State University. where he playedcollege baseball andcollege basketball for theKent State Golden Flashes.[2]
He spent one season (1966–67) playing professional basketball for the Columbus Comets of theNorth American Basketball League.
Although he was listed as 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) tall and 183 pounds (83 kg), Michael was given the nickname "Stick" because of his slender frame.[3] After signing with thePittsburgh Pirates in 1959,[4] the switch-hitter made his major league debut with the Pirates in1966[5] as a backup shortstop toGene Alley.
That December, the Pirates traded Michael to theLos Angeles Dodgers with third basemanBob Bailey forMaury Wills.[6] He spent one season inLos Angeles and was then purchased by theNew York Yankees.[7] He played for the Yankees from1968 through1974. Michael appeared in over 100 games five times over seven seasons with the Yanks, andbatted a career-high .272 with 112hits in1969.
Upon being unconditionally released in January 1975 at age 36,[8] he signed with theDetroit Tigers, where he spent the1975 campaign, reunited with his longtime Yankee manager,Ralph Houk.[9] Released again in February 1976, Michael joined theBoston Red Sox, spending spring training with them and making their early season roster as a utility infielder. However, he did not play in any American League games for Boston, and was released in May.[10]
He retired with a .229batting average, 15home runs and 226runs batted in in 973 games played.[11][12] Michael was a master of thehidden-ball trick, which he executed five times in his career.[13]
Weeks after his release from Boston, Michael became acoach with the Yankees.[10]Reggie Jackson credited Michael's scouting reports for helping him hit three home runs in Game 6 of the1977 World Series.[14] Michael served as manager of the Yankees'Triple-A team in 1979 and asgeneral manager of the Yankees in 1980.[15] In 1981, Michael became the Yankees' manager. He had managed well in Triple-A, but some veteran players believed that he had been selected because he would be more likely to follow Yankee ownerGeorge Steinbrenner's orders than had predecessorDick Howser.[16] At one point in the 1981 season, annoyed by Steinbrenner's constant interference, he challenged Steinbrenner to fire him,[1] and he was fired in September.[17][18] He was hired again in 1982 but was fired in August after publicly criticizing Steinbrenner's interference.[19][20] As a manager, he and his coaches would keep extensive data in notebooks that they studied to help make decisions.[21] Michael finished with a record of 92 wins and 76 losses over both stints as Yankees manager.[22] He returned to the Yankees' front office in 1983 and again served as a coach starting in 1984.[23] He next managed theChicago Cubs in1986 and1987.[24] His managerial record with the Cubs was 114 wins and 124 losses.[22]
_-_New_York_Yankees_-_1981.jpg)
In1990, the Yankees hired Michael was hired for his second term as general manager.[25] With Steinbrenner suspended from baseball operations by commissionerFay Vincent, Michael took advantage of his managerial flexibility by rebuilding the Yankees'farm system, developing young talent rather than trading it away as the team had done in the 1980s with little success.[1] During Michael's tenure as general manager, the Yankees signed notable players such asMariano Rivera,Andy Pettitte,Derek Jeter andJorge Posada (collectively known as theCore Four) and traded forPaul O'Neill.[26] Michael also demonstrated patience withBernie Williams, whom Steinbrenner had wanted to trade when Williams struggled early in his career.[27]
This foundation fueled Yankees championships in1996 and from1998–2000. However, Michael was fired in 1995 before the Yankees dynasty began to win World Series as a result of fallouts from the1994 strike, which had ended the Yankees' chance to complete the season with the best record in the American League.[28] It was the second time that the Yankees had fired Michael as a result of a strike, as he had been fired after the team slumped following the1981 strike.[29][30]
From 1996 until2002, Michael served as vice president of major-league scouting for the Yankees. In 2002, the Red Sox tried to approach Michael about their general manager position, but the Yankees did not grant permission.[31][32] In2003, Michael was promoted to vice-president and senior advisor,[33] a position that he held until his death.
During his time as vice president, Michael was a regular attendee at the annualOld-Timers' Day festivities, serving as the manager for both the Bombers and the Clippers teams in the exhibition game.
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| NYY | 1981 | 56 | 34 | 22 | .607 | 1st in AL East | – | – | – | – |
| 26 | 14 | 12 | .538 | fired | ||||||
| NYY | 1982 | 86 | 44 | 42 | .512 | fired | – | – | – | – |
| NYY total | 168 | 92 | 76 | .548 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
| CHC | 1986 | 102 | 46 | 56 | .451 | 5th in NL East | – | – | – | – |
| CHC | 1987 | 136 | 68 | 68 | .500 | resigned | – | – | – | – |
| CHC total | 238 | 114 | 124 | .479 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
| Total[22] | 406 | 206 | 200 | .507 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
During his tenure with the Yankees, Michael had been a resident ofNorwood, New Jersey and had four children. He married twice, with his first marriage to Rae Reuter ending in divorce.[1]
Michael died following aheart attack on September 7, 2017 inOldsmar, Florida at age 79. His survivors included his second wife and four children.[11][34] To honor Michael, the Yankees woreblack armbands on their uniforms for the remainder of the 2017 season.[12]
'The strike cost me my job,' said Gene Michael, the Yankees' current general manager who was fired as their manager Sept. 6, 1981 and replaced byBob Lemon. 'There's no doubt in my mind we would have won the division outright if it had not been for the strike. Once they split the season and designated us winners of the first half, we did not play the same.'
· Baseball Almanac